LAW OF THE LAND

Judge: No prison time
for 'gay' rapist teacher

On heels of Vermont outrage,

predator gets only probation

Published: 01/18/2006 at 5:00 PM

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A former high school teacher who pleaded guilty to the homosexual rape of one of his teenage students will avoid jail time.

Gregory Pathiakis, 26, of Brockton, Mass., pleaded guilty yesterday to one count of rape of a child, enticement of a child under 16, five counts of possession of child pornography and one count of distribution of harmful material to a child, according to the Enterprise newspaper of Brockton, Mass.

Pathiakis, who quit his job after school officials questioned his extracurricular contact with students, was arrested in January 2004 after a 15-year-old boy told authorities the Middleboro High School teacher raped him Dec. 23, 2003.

As WorldNetDaily reported, a judge in Vermont drew national outrage this month after giving an admitted child rapist a 60-day jail sentence.

Pathiakis must now register as a sex offender and is banned from any work or activities involving children.

Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz told the Enterprise it was “disheartening to see that there is not some sort of incarceration.”

“He was in a position of authority over these kids,” Cruz said.

Pathiakis had resigned his position at Middleboro High School three weeks before the incident after school officials confronted him about contacts with students on the Internet. But he worked as a substitute teacher at Brockton High School the day before his arrest.

Investigators seized Pathiakis’ computer to examine e-mails he sent to the boy, which led to the child pornography charges. The sex act took place in his apartment, with no force, but the law stipulates a 15-year-old cannot consent to sexual relations.

The boy wrote a statement, read by his father in court, telling the teacher, “I feel you deserve jail. You are a disgrace to all teachers.”

The teen said the incident forced him to leave school and activities he loved and be homeschooled.